


Cal Sanders And the Artemesian Boar

by An_Odd_Boi



Series: Cal Sanders Duology [1]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-15
Updated: 2019-08-18
Packaged: 2020-09-01 14:37:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 14,798
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20259715
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/An_Odd_Boi/pseuds/An_Odd_Boi
Summary: Cal has always been watched by Artemis. He was a test. Could males be trusted in the hunt? Now he finally gets a chance to prove his loyalty to her.Book 1Let me know if you spot any mistakes





	1. The vow

Cal ran. He just ran. His lungs were burning and he could feel his binder constricting his chest. His friend, Flint, was dead in the mud 100 yards back, his blood staining the dirt as it had his grey shirt. The empousai that chased him shrieked their displeasure as he ran through the stone archway that signalled the entrance to Camp and it's magical borders. As he crossed, he turned back to look at the vampire women and saw them turn to gold dust, a single silver arrow had flown through both empousai's heads. No longer being chased, he stopped dead in his tracks and bent over, breathing heavily with one hand on his knee and the other clutching his stomach. His navy blue shirt was soaked in sweat and only the black baseball cap on his head was keeping the sweat out of his eyes. As he removed it and ran his free hand through his cropped blond hair he heard a confused voice from further inside the border. "Jason?! Is that you?" Out of the woods came of group of teenage girls in silver jackets lead by two girls who looked a couple of years older than Cal, one with a circlet of moonstones resting in her choppy black hair and the other who had flowing brown hair resting lightly on her shoulders. The black haired one held a bow in her hand; she had fired the shot that had killed the vampire women. As Cal turned to face her, she sighed in disappointment. "You're not Jason.." She said flatly. Cal thought he detected a hint of malice in her voice, as though it was his fault that he looked like someone she knew. Turning on her heel the girl walked back into the Forrest, followed by the rest of the group. Cal stared after them, confused at to what had just happened and felt a firm hand clasp his shoulder. "Hunters of Artemis. Eternal maidens. They're off limits. If you try to make advances prepare to lose some very important organs." The beefy girl whom the hand belonged to chuckled. Cal turned to her confused. "What.. No .. I wasn't.. ugh." He pressed a hand to his forehead and gave up trying to explain himself. "Yeah, sure. They all say that. I'm Clarisse, daughter of Ares." She eyed him up and appeared to judge him as satisfactory. "Well you're not a wet blanket anyway, What's your name?" "Cal. Cal Sanders. I'm a legacy of Nike but my father couldn't tell me who my mother is." He replied numbly. "Alright then Cal. Let's go show you the Induction Video..." She said the last part with mock gusto but seeing a friend killed puts a dampener on a person spirits and Cal was in no mood to laugh.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

A few days later, Cal was in the arena, taking a crash course on his chosen weapon - the sai. Many of the of the hunters were training as well. They were incredibly talented fighters and when he was allowed to take a break he spent his time watching them, Clarisse had teased him for it at first but after he told her where to shove her comments because he was Aromantic and Asexual she dropped the subject. "Damn Cal!" Clarisse was sparring with him and was struggling to get a hit in with her sword, she hadn't held back either. "How are you so good at this?!" Cal shrugged. "I guess being a legacy of Nike has it's perks." But the daughter of Ares wasn't listening any more. Instead she was staring at the glowing symbol above Cal's head. A crossed torch and key. "Hail Cal. Son of Hecate."

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

The next day the hunters were preparing to leave when Cal walked into their camp. Their wolves growled at him and every hunter trained their bows on him as he knelt before Artemis. "Tell me why I shouldn't turn you into a Jackalope where you stand boy." Despite her young face, Artemis was incredibly scary and Cal regretted coming to ask his question now. But there was no turning back now. He took a deep breath to calm himself before speaking clearly and confidently. "Forgive my boldness Lady Artemis. My name is Cal and I came to ask to join your hunt." A low chatter started as the hunters discussed his controversial request. "Men are not permitted to join the hunt you -" Thalia spat and was about to call him something rude but was cut off by Artemis's stern voice. "I'm sure you had already heard of our rules. What makes you so special that we would break them?" "My Lady, I am Aromantic and Asexual. I can promise without a doubt in my mind that I have no romantic interest in your hunters." "Men have claimed to not be interested before.." " I know that there is little I can tell you that will change your minds but would a Styx vow be enough?" "You. A male. Are willing to swear on the Styx that you will not fall in love with my hunters? Something that is beyond your concious control?" "Without hesitation." Artemis nodded. "Very well. You may take our vow." As the hunters started to protest she spoke above them. "Let this be a test. This boy will represent his whole gender. If he fails never again will it ever be considered! So make the vows Cal." Her eyes locked with Cal's and he found he could not look away. The weight of her ultimatum being placed on his shoulders. With his head held high he spoke clearly. " I swear by the river Styx that I will never fall in love with or make advances towards any of Artemis' followers I pledge alleigence to the goddess Artemis, accept eternal Bachelorhood and join the hunt." All at once he found himself wearing a silver leather jacket and trousers, with a bow and quiver slung across his back. Luckily he was still wearing his binder, that could have been a disaster otherwise He smiled, tough times were ahead but he thrived in tough times.


	2. The Goddess Transformed

The hunters were exhausted. They had finally tracked down a group of Manticores that had been terrorizing the eastern seaboard. It had taken all of their energy to kill the beasts and now they wanted to rest.

As the least exhausted of the group, cooking duty fell to Cal that evening so as the other weary teenagers set up camp he started a fire and got to work preparing a stew. Not long later he and the hunters were sat around the fire chatting. The only exceptions were Thalia and Artemis had gone to the stream to wash the ichor off of thier knives and, in Thalia's case, her spear. Many of the hunters around the fire were also cleaning their blades, others mending arrows while they finished eating, a few had even fallen asleep with their head rested against their wolves.

Their relaxation was spoilt by a loud roaring and Thalia's shout. "Hunters! To me!!"

Those who were awake, however tired they were, sprang into action: bowls were shoved aside, whistles rang out as they called for the wolves, all of them pulling bows from their backs or picking up weapons as they ran to aid their lieutenant. Cal was right in the centre of the group, his silver handled, black Sai gripped tightly in his hands, a vivid blue light surrounding them and his usually green eyes glowed blue as well. While he was an excellent marksman he preferred the versatility of the Sai, just as many of the girls preferred knives.

As they reached the river bank they were greeted by a lone Thalia, facing down a huge boar. It towered over her, it's tusks were golden and it's teeth were as sharp as the hunters' knives. The ground around it was scorched and smoking billowed from it's mouth. It's beady silver eyes were fixed on Thalia as she tried to defend herself with only a knife and her Medusa shield. Her spear lay broken ten feet away, trampled into the mud. The hunters quickly formed a loose half circle around the beast, several firing arrows at it, but they just bounced off it's thick, leathery hide.

The girls stopped. Those carrying knives sheathed them and drew their bows. Cal too summoned his bow, they all nocked and drew, but not a single person fired because as Thalia fell in line she called out. "Hold your fire!"

"But Thalia -" Carrie, Thalia's second in command, an auburn haired mortal who had been roughly 18 when she accepted immortality, spoke out as the boar paced, eyeing up the silver clothed warriors.

"No Carrie. Hunters - this our Lady, transfigured into the form of a beast. No one looses an arrow unless I say otherwise."

The boar stopped pacing and pawed the ground with it's front hoof, preparing to charge right through the hunters' ranks forcing Thalia to make a decision.

"Lower your weapons and let it out! No lives will be lost today." Thalia commanded. The group lowered their bows in unison and split in half to form two lines, letting the boar run deep into the woods, faster than any animal of it's size should be able to.

Danger aside, the hunters broke formation and followed Thalia back to their camp.

"What happens now?" A blonde girl, Madeleine, asked.

Thalia sighed. "Everyone get some rest - We have a long journey tomorrow."  
As they all turned to head into their tents Thalia grabbed Cal's arm, forcing him to turn and face her.

"Lady Artemis may not be here any more but don't think for a second you aren't still being watched." She said in hushed tones.

"Fifteen years and you still don't trust me. Well you needn't worry. The Styx would punish me before you could, remember." Cal said dryly, pulling his arm out of her grip. It was a 'conversation' the two had had several times over his time in the hunt but not for many years now, he thought that Thalia had warmed up to him by now but he was clearly wrong. "May I go now?" He asked.

"You may. But remember you're on predawn watch." Pleasant as anything, as if their words hadn't been so poison laced.

Cal just nodded and went back to his tent to get some much needed sleep.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

The next day Thalia lead the hunters up the coast to Long Island and Camp Half-blood, arriving there in the afternoon. Chiron welcomed them, offering them the choice to use their cabin as normal which, also as normal, Thalia declined. Once tents were pitched Thalia gave the hunters free reign while she spoke with Chiron and the Oracle in the Big House.

Making the most of his freedom, Cal started by returning a book of magic to Hecate cabin and borrowing a new one. He then went to see Will Solace. The blonde son of Apollo was still the head healer but by now his own daughter, Bianca, (he and his husband Nico had adopted an orphaned child of Demeter) was training with the rest of them.

As he walked into the infirmary he found it almost empty with only Will in there dealing with a camper with deep scratch marks on his stomach. The boy was groaning in pain and wouldn't let Will help him.  
"Cal, give me a hand here!" The son of Apollo was trying to hold the camper down and cauterize the wound. "Stop him struggling." His voice was strained and the bed was soaked in blood suggesting he'd been trying for a while. Jogging over he took the young camper's hand kindly and smiled.  
"Πήγαινε για ύπνο." He commanded, his voice laced with magic; his eyes glowing blue. The injured boy, who looked to be only 12, closed his dark eyes and slept. Will sighed with relief as he could finally treat the boy properly. Cal helped out by holding the cuts together while the healer sewed them shut. Once he was satisfied that the cuts were dressed correctly and the boy was stable, Will turned to Cal, who now had blood on his hands from helping out.

"Thanks Cal. You're a lifesaver." He said, beckoning the hunter over to the sink used for hand washing. "Now, How can I help you?"

"Last time I was in Camp I asked you if you could get hold of a new binder for me?" Cal asked as he scrubbed the blood off his hands.

"Ah yes. I remember." Will gestured at a row of cabinets with his elbow. "Third along, Middle shelf. There's a brown package with your name on it."

"Thanks Doc." Cal said. He dried his hands off and as he collected his parcel he voiced the other matter on his mind. "How come it's only you in here? Where are the rest of your siblings?"

Will sighed. "On a quest."

"All of them?"

"Yeah. Apparently Dad turned into a giant python, Rachel's latest prophecy sent them all after him. I stayed behind because someone needed to be a healer still."

Cal looked at Will oddly. "When did this happen?" He asked.

"Yesterday. They left at first light this morning. Why?"

"Artemis was transformed into a giant boar yesterday. We came here to seek advice from Chiron and Rachel about what our next move should be."

"Hmm. The plot thickens."

"Indeed. Anyway, I should probably go train before Thalia has a go at me. Oh and you've got another couple of hours on the sleep spell". Cal turned and headed out in the direction of the arena.

"Alright. See you later man. And thanks again for the help." Will called after the son of Hecate.


	3. The Prophecies

Later Thalia spoke with the Hunters as they sat at their table in the dining pavilion. Someone had started a food fight but the immortal teenagers were unsurprisingly the only ones who had stayed seated. No one had dared throw anything near them either, fearing the stories that had been floating around about Capture the Flag. Many of the hunters would have normally joined in but were not in the mood today. Thalia and Carrie were trying to make light of a bad situation rather than worry the group but it wasn't really working because Thalia had spoken to Chiron and Rachel but without a prophecy Chiron wouldn't let the Hunters take any action. Thalia was starting to wish they had just followed Artemis themselves instead of seeking advice.

Movement at the entrance caused the Demigods around them to go silent and the hunters to turn and look. The red-headed oracle was stood there, shrouded in green smoke and like a couple of others, Cal pulled out a notebook to write down her prophecy.

It was a tense moment before the Oracle spoke but when she did no one dared obscure her words.

_"A goddess once defeated now attempts to rise._  
_Without Half-blood intervention she will surely claim her prize._  
_One after the other the gods will be transformed,_  
_Into monstrous forms by The Witch that they have scorned._  
_The Olympian's saviour will share The Witch's blood_  
_Take heed, do not throw him out when the time comes_."

Rachel stopped speaking, smoke no longer pouring from her mouth and blinked as she took in the change of scenery caused by the spirit of Delphi taking over her body. She started to walk towards Thalia, perhaps to ask if her prophecy had been useful when smoke started pouring out of her mouth again. Addressing the hunters only her ethereal voice rang out.

_"There are many great Hunters in your immortal creed,_  
_All of you will search but only one group will succeed._  
_Fear the final confrontation_  
_The deciever alone can prevent your decimation_  
_One dead, one burnt, one severely broken_  
_But only one of you may earn the goddess's token."_

Following her second prophetic vision Rachel collapsed.

For a moment no one spoke but then the pavilion erupted into raucous chatter, the food fight well behind them.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Later around the campfire, as well as seeing who could fit the most marshmallows in their mouth (a competition won easily by a young hunter called Eliza), the teenagers were discussing possible meanings of the prophecies they had heard. Cal had written each couplet on a separate page and was making notes around them as ideas were suggested. Before they headed out they wanted to have an idea of what lay ahead. Some of the lines were filler, some were obvious but others were so broad that the pages had been filled.

They gave up quickly and started several started telling stories from past hunts. Cal zoned out for a while before he heard his name. Carrie was telling the young hunters about one of his first proper battles. "So then Thalia asked him how many arrows were in his quiver - take a guess his answer." Cal sighed and shook his head with a laugh as a few suggestions were thrown out. "You're all wrong - He had twelve."

He grinned sportingly. "Shut up, Hawkeye did it once in a movie." A few of the older hunters looked a little confused but he got a few laughs as well. "Anyway - you forgot to say that we had come straight from a hunt where most of my arrows were destroyed by acid."

"Oh but it's more fun the way I tell it."

"Alright then - I'll tell them about the time you tried to pet a Chimera!"

"Don't you dare.."

Cal opened his mouth to speak but was tackled by the girl. They wrestled for a bit before Cal ended up in an arm lock and tapped out. "Alright. You win.." Once she released him he added, "I'll save it for another time."

Carrie shook her fist melodramatically and the others laughed. It was times like these that made Cal enjoy being a hunter.


	4. Going Underground

As soon as dawn broke, the silver tents were packed away and the hunters were splitting off into teams to search. Thalia and Carrie were in different teams and one had Eliza the other Madeleine but the rest of the hunters had formed their own small groups. Several invited Cal to join them but Thalia stepped in. "Sorry guys, Cal is with me." There were a few more changes to ensure that, in the interest of safety, none of the teams were under or over powered then Thalia gave her instructions. "Alright, Stay vigilant and don't underestimate Artemis. Check in whenever you stop to rest. Everyone know where they're heading?"

A series of nods followed.

"Then move out."

Each group set off at a jog. Some heading for airports or train stations, others didn't need to travel so far so they were travelling at a more sedate pace. With no time constraints in the prophecy they didn't need to rush at all.

Thalia, Cal and Eliza headed to J.F.K airport in Queens and boarded the next flight to Fresno with the intention of starting their search in Yosemite and then heading north.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

A few days later they were finishing their sweep of the forest and preparing to head north. Cal split off from Thalia and Eliza to go around a large boulder when the ground opened up beneath him. He cried out in surprise but by the time Thalia had rounded the rock to help he was nowhere in sight and there was no evidence of a hole. The two searched for an hour before giving up and meeting up with another group. As per the usual rules he had 2 weeks before he was declared dead.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Cal awoke with a throbbing headache and a sharp pain in his ankle and sat up. He had no idea what time it was or how long he'd been lying there. The ground beneath him was solid rock but he couldn't see a damn thing. "Φωτιά!" He commanded and a small blue flame appeared in his palm. He looked around himself an saw several unlit torches in brackets on the wall so he threw the flame into them, creating a much better light level in the room. Looking up he found he was staring at a cave ceiling 30 feet above him and considered himself lucky not to have worse injuries.

His black boots seemed to be acting as a splint and keeping the swelling down so he didn't remove his boots to look at the break. Instead he pulled his silver pack off his back and fished around for his first aid. He broke 2 squares of ambrosia off of a bar and ate them quickly. The taste of chocolate cake was comforting and the pain faded to a dull throb.

Now that he could think straight he studied the cave he was in. There were three paths leading off it and each had an odd, earthy smell of decay coming from them. The structure or the tunnels seemed very old and the headless skeleton he had spotted in the corner was wearing scraps of an orange shirt and carrying a bronze sword. He knew where he was and he didn't like it at all. Daedalus' Labyrinth had been reborn.

He had to move. He knew he had only two weeks to find a way out and if he was right about where he was then time worked differently down here. He pulled himself up and tested if his ankle was weight bearing. It wasn't. He fell on his face.

He got up again and hopped over to the skeleton. After giving slipping a drachma into the skull where the tongue would have been and saying a short blessing he picked up the sword to use as a walking stick. He chose the path that smelt the least like death, grabbed a torch and started to walk, lighting torches as he went in order to mark his path.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

As it turned out, after what felt like days, the tunnel lead to the lair of a very old Crocotta. A monster with the body of a stag, the head of a lion, a sharp bony ridge instead of teeth and skin that was impervious to metal. Cal had to shoot a flaming arrow down it's throat and burn from the inside to kill it. He did earn some cloven hooves as a trophy though. He was quite pleased with that because getting hold of Crocotta hooves for potion use was basically impossible and if he ever got out of here alive he would definitely be in Lou-Ellen's good books.

He picked up the sword and was about to choose another pathway when he had an idea. Pulling out his spell kit he grabbed one of the many leg bones in the Crocotta's pile, mixed some ingredients together into a paste, coated the bone in it and said a long spell to turn it it a tracking device. The bone jumped into the air and hovered. Cal wasn't sure if his idea was going to work but he gave the bone it's instruction any way. "Βρείτε τη χάρη Thalia." The bone trembled for a moment then floated down the left tunnel. Cal limped slowly after it.


	5. Down

Cal had been walking for too many days now. He'd been caught in too many traps and fought too many monsters. He was out of food, out of ambrosia and out of hope. He'd lost the sword/crutch in a fight with a hydra which had also left him with too many scratches on his back and he was now forced to hobble along with only the walls for help. This strain on the joint had stoped the ambrosia from healing it at all. It had become especially difficult now that his right hand was also out of action. It had been crushed by a tunnel that had clearly been watching too much Star Wars and decided that it wanted to be just like the Death Star's trash compactor. His bone guide seemed to be leading him nowhere, it had lead him in circles several times before and even tried to go through the ceiling a few times. His silver jacket was ripped, there was dried blood on everything and his jeans were missing half a leg. His face was so covered in dirt and cuts and swelling from bruises that he was unrecognizable but the unique Sai he carried had somehow remained undamaged.

A section of the wall flicked out to smack him in the shin. His good leg collapsed and his broken ankle hit the the floor in an attempt to pick up the weight. He cried out as he collapsed to the ground and curled up in pain. As he fell his hand had brushed against a symbol carved on the wall prompting the roof to fall in, burying his torso, knocking him out flat and bringing several very surprised silver clad warriors down with it.   
"Everyone alright?" One called out followed by three confirmations and one exclamation of surprise. "Someone is buried under the rocks here." Madeleine said.  
The dark haired girls quickly moved the debris and turned him over. "Cal?!" Another said, not quite believing her own words. "Oh my gods.. THALIA! IT'S CAL!"

The lieutenant's voice called down to them. "Impossible. He's been missing for 5 months, Annie. He is officially dead. You know that." Her tone was slightly mournful, although Cal wouldn't believe it if you told him.

"Come and see for yourself - His face is unclear but it's a blond male in hunter's uniform. I promise you."

Thalia's head appeared over the hole and her face lit up. "By the Goddess. You're right." She called for a stretcher and ropes to lift him out. They were brought by two girls. One of whom - Katie - (affectionately called Mom) was a stocky daughter of Hephaestus who had attached the ropes to the stretcher in the ten seconds it had taken her to run over. She and the other girl, Liana, lifted Cal up and then carried him into a tent to care for him better. As they were carrying him he started to come round and groaned in pain.

Once they were inside Liana left, Katie got some nectar into him and he regained consciousness properly. The huntress got his attention by tapping his shoulder gently. 'Welcome back magic boy.' She signed. 'We thought you were dead!'   
He pointed at himself and made a mediocre jazz hand as if to say Ta-da.  
She smiled before asking him what hurt. He rubbed his eyes, struggling to concentrate through the pain, and tried to sign 'repeat' but realized that he couldn't make the complete sign with one hand so resorted to finger spelling the word. She obliged and he understood the question this time. He gestured at his whole body before spelling 'Will Solace'.

'Why Will?' She asked.

He grimaced in pain as he took a deep breath and simply signed 'please'. He knew that it was a bad idea to keep his binder on with his ribs in such pain but he didn't really want the huntress removing his clothing to treat the many flesh wounds he had whereas he had already trusted Will with his identity.

The girl nodded reluctantly and gave him some ambrosia before exiting the tent and returning a short while later with Thalia in tow. "You asshole. Making us think you were dead." The black haired girl joked. "But other than your injuries you've not aged a day."

Cal just raised an eyebrow, "We're literally immortal." He said.

"Oh yeah." She grinned. Cal laughed and then groaned.

"Laughing hurts. No more jokes." He groaned.

"No more jokes." She agreed. "In all seriousness, You've been missing for 5 months. We burnt your shroud. What happened?"

"For me it was only... how many days.. 5 or 6 maybe." He replied. "I couldn't track the exact amount of time exactly though - Thalia it's the labyrinth. It's been reborn and it's worse than that story you told of Percy Jackson's time down there."

Thalia straightened up with a renewed sense of purpose. "You and me are going straight to Chiron as soon as I can I.M Nico."

Katie had just about followed the conversation by reading the pairs lips and chimed in prompting a slightly heated debate with Thalia who quickly gave in to the girls demands.

"Apparently we're now going to Will first."

Cal would have agreed with Katie, if he hadn't passed out from pain again.


	6. 6. But not out.

Nico appeared pretty quickly once Thalia had managed to actually create a rainbow but it was a multiple jump trip on the way back with three extra people. Cal was dipping in and out of consciousness for most of it but once they had reached Camp he managed to stay conscious long enough to tell Chiron that Yes - he was absolutely sure that it was the same labyrinth and Yes - it was definitely worse than before. Will made everyone leave after that and he gave Cal a heavy sedative.

Cal awoke properly in a hospital bed and was instantly glad to hear more than one person in there as opposed to the silence that had greeted him when he was last here. He could feel from the pressure on them that his ankle and wrist were in splints. He also knew instantly that he was not wearing a binder or his Hunters uniform. That was probably why the curtains were drawn around him. He made a mental note to thank Will for the privacy later. His ribs were still sore and so was his back but they definitely were better than before. He managed to drag himself into a sitting position and looked around for his belongings (they were resting against the bed leg closest to him) but was stopped by the son of Apollo coming to check on him.

"Ah, Cal, you're awake." Will smiled.

"How long was I out?" Cal asked.

"Because I know how tricky you are to deal with, I kept you under for 2 days to allow your body to start the healing process before you started trying to move around."  
This was perfectly timed as Cal was already shifting around awkwardly in an attempt to get out of the bed. "Nope. Sorry - You're not going anywhere." Will said. Cal stared him down. "No Cal - I have orders from Thalia and Chiron. You need to be fully healed before you can follow the hunters."

Cal's eyes widened. "Follow? They've left already?! Please tell me they're not going into the labyrinth."

Will's silence was deafening.

"They are aren't they..."

Will nodded. "They figured out how to activate the old entrance by Zeus's Fist."

"Di Immortales!" He cursed. He thought for a moment, weighing up his options - he could wait and leave the hunters alone or he could ask Will to expend all his power to finish the healing process, or... Yes.. there was a spell - he had seen it in the contents - but he would need a distraction - Will would never let him attempt it - Healing magic was very risky. This called for some slightly underhand tactics.

"Can you fetch Lou-Ellen for me?" He asked.

"Sure, but why?" Will asked confused.

"Apparently I'm not allowed to leave this bed but I have something I need to give her so please ask her to come and see me."

Will nodded and left. "Don't go anywhere." He ordered. Cal held his hands up in surrender but said nothing.

As soon as Will had redrawn the curtains, Cal grabbed his backpack from the floor and pulled the spell book out. He flicked to the correct page ran his finger down it until he found the line where the spell started and started to read it in a low voice. As he spoke in Greek his eyes lit up blue and then the glow spread. His whole body radiated a warm sapphire light that cured all his pain and sealed up the many cracks and breaks in his bones with ease. Shoving the book to the side, he removed the splints from his wrist and ankle and got dressed in the spare uniform that had been left for him.

He quickly wrote a short note to Lou-Ellen and left it on top of the Crocotta hooves as a good will gift before grabbing his pack, sneaking out of the infirmary and sprinting to Artemis Cabin. They never stayed in it but it was a useful place to store trail rations, spare ambrosia and bows in case of emergencies. He shoved enough rations for several weeks into his backpack, ate a piece of ambrosia to make up for the energy expended from his spell, slung a bow and quiver onto his back and jogged to Zeus's fist. He was racing against time - if anyone noticed he was gone ahead of schedule then he would. He searched frantically for a mundane way to open the entrance but it remained closed so instead he commanded it to open. "Άνοιγμα στο όνομα ενός μαγικού γιού!"

At once he found himself in a red brick tunnel. Sensing danger he ducked as a spinning blade flew over his head and the rolled under one coming the other way. Now that he was at full strength the labyrinth wouldn't get the better of him.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Will swore loudly when he saw that Cal had tricked him. Lou-Ellen picked up the note to show will.

_Sorry to use you as a distraction Lou-Ellen, This is something I have to do. I wasn't lying about having something to give you. Take these _ _Crocotta_ _ hooves as a token of good will. I know you've been trying to get hold of some forever. _

_Oh and Doc - Don't be mad - This labyrinth is nothing to me now that I can use both feet._

_~Cal_

Lou-Ellen laughed at Cal's confidence until she saw the spell Cal had used. ""Oh God... Cal.. what have you done. Will - look at the warning!"

"A permanence potion must be used within 24 hours or the spell will reverse and the injuries will return tenfold..."

Lou-Ellen nodded. "It could kill him."

Will's face was grave. "We just have to hope he also knows this and is working with a time limit in mind."

Lou-Ellen nodded. "But is it Labyrinth time or our time?"

Will went quiet, contemplating the possibility of each and sighed. "Fates and Tyche be with him. He's going to need all the luck he can get."


	7. 7. The Hunt

This time Cal had the time and energy to cast a more effective (and less macabre) tracking spell, and was now following a softly glowing arrow rather than the bone of a fallen warrior. He was constantly dodging the traps, pits, and all the weapons that were fired from the walls. At several point he'd actually had to scale a wall. Once to go around a pit snakes and once because the floor of the corridor had vanished beneath him. It was at this point that he thanked the Gods for the Lava Wall at Camp as he dangled from a rocky outcrop by one hand.

After about two hours he found the silver clad warriors and the glowing blue arrow vanished. He was welcomed with open arms and only Thalia asked him how long it had been - assuming he had healed naturally. Without thinking Cal lied and said a week - and just like that the hunt began. Clearly Cal's disappearance and survival had improved Thalia's opinion of the boy. Cal walked into the middle of the group but turned around at the last minute.

"One thing, Thalia..." Now that he was back with the hunters he, like everyone else did, was signing everything he said for Katie's benefit.

She raised an eyebrow, allowing him to continue.

"May I take point on this hunt. As the most experienced in the labyrinth and as a son of Hecate I may be able to manipulate it slightly to our will.."

Thalia thought for a moment before speaking, choosing her words carefully. "Your experience is valuable but I don't think you are ready to lead. I will accept your guidance though." 

Cal decided to cut his losses and accept the offer he had been given as he turned around and was surrounded by his friends. Thalia and a Satyr called Kai lead the way into the catacombs. The lieutenant smiled to herself and remarked that Annabeth would love the architecture down here. 

Cal grinned at Katie and signed jokingly to her, 'Thanks for taking care of me Mom'. She nodded, acknowledging that he did actually mean it, and they both then focused on the task at hand.

The hunters continued onwards in a single file crocodile for another half day their time. True to her word Thalia consulted Cal on his labyrinthine and magical knowledge but to everyone's surprise since Cal had joined them they'd had no problems. It was as though the living maze was waiting; building up strength for something far worse than any of them had encountered before. Cal could feel the power contained within the aged walls. He could feel it waxing and waning as though straining against something else that commanded it to wait. It worried him and Thalia was worried too but for different reasons. 

"Cal, why haven't we found any more obstacles? Surely the labyrinth should be far more dangerous than this." She asked pulling him to the side.

"I.. I don't know but it's feels like the maze itself is being held back by some other power."

"Could it be Daedalus?"

"Perhaps.." He pulled out his notebook. "But he doesn't really fit the prophecy.."

"Who else can command the Maze then?"

"I'm sorry Thalia but I genuinely can't think of anyone." He said earnestly as he gestured at the annotations he had crossed out in his book. "Pasiphaë is still dead, No one has heard anything about Medea since her last appearance... There's no one else with the power level or connection." 

"Alright. Thanks Cal." Thalia sighed and went to speak to Kai about their next direction and the sounds of a Satyr's piped tracking spell filled the air and they were moving once again, Cal paying even closer attention than normal.

It was against all their better judgements to stop and camp when they grew tired so Thalia handed out the last of their reserves of the silvery liquid known as Moon Water to keep them refreshed. 

Gradually the maze grew darker, the air grew colder, the ever present sounds of monsters grew louder and the architecture grew older - some tunnels were little more than structured mud with a few cracked bricks on the floor - but still the Hunters continued unchallenged until they were finally forced to stop out of exhaustion. They chose a wide corridor to set up the tents and the wolves positioned themself at either end. One hunter would wait at each end on watch for two hours before waking up the next. 

Cal was woken for the third watch. He was groggy but once he was out in the cold air he woke up properly. He leaned against the wall as the wolves nudged him gently. They were restless underground, preferring an open, wooded environment to he claustrophobic catacombs that encased them. Cal rested his bow against the wall, stuck three arrows in the ground and then sat down among his Lupine companions. The warm bodies that surrounded made him tired again and he started to drift off. Before he could though, he felt the wolves tense up and growl lowly. They crouched, hackles raised, and prowled restlessly causing Cal to stand and gesture at them to calm down. He looked across the camp and saw the other guard doing the same. They made eye contact and picked up their bows nocking an arrow. It was only then that Cal noticed the silence. As he drew back his bow cautiously he heard the wolves howl and looked back at the other guard to see a wall flames hurtle towards her as the wolves ran past him.

"Carrie!"

Cal froze as the Huntress turned to face the towering inferno. With no time to run she snapped her arms into an X in front of her face, trying to pull as much water from the ground around them as possible to protect herself though however hard she tried even in November there was not enough to protect her from the blaze that engulfed her. The other Hunters, who had scrambled from their tents with weapons drawn, picked up their packs and ran for the other end of the corridor. 

"Cal! Come on!" Thalia grabbed his arm and dragged him away. As they all reached the end and went to turn the corner, a wall shot up and blocked them in. With no options left, Cal stepped in front of the group. He planted his feet and clasped his hands together before forcing them sharply out wards and shouting a word of command. 

"Διαίρεση!"

The fire parted and vanished into the walls. And then so did the ground.


	8. 8. Liar, Liar. Camp's on fire.

As the ground cracked and split, and they started to fall Cal felt an annoying sense of Deja Vu. As the hunters screamed, he managed to twist his body and command the ground beneath them to soften. It was a very difficult spell and instantly Cal felt himself getting tired but it worked. They hit the ground with a soft thump and quite a few groans, covering their heads as rock and concrete fell around them. As the last chips fell, the wolves ran amongst the hunters and nudged their faces in concern.

"Everyone alright?" Thalia called as she pulled herself to her feet and then helping Madeleine up. Around her the others were helping each other up and dusting themselves off. They quickly set about salvaging the burning remains of their tents from the rubble that had been the floor. Cal was among them searching sluggishly for the pack that he'd left in his tent but looking around he couldn't help but notice that the rumble seemed to have fallen in two very organised lines leaving a central lane like a road. It was as he contemplated this that Katie tapped him frantically on the shoulder and pointed further down the path in the direction they had come from. 

Looking over he saw Carrie's body lying motionless on the ground. He jogged over, beckoning to Katie to follow. A move that didn't go unnoticed amongst the others. Eliza and Kara ran to join them and sank to their knees with a sob as their brains finally processed the events of the past few minutes. Carrie's body was covered in blisters, large parts of her arms and torso were blackened, her face was unrecognizable and her beautiful auburn hair had burnt away entirely leaving her raw scalp behind. There was barely even scraps of her uniform left to identify her by. Katie knelt down gently to check for a pulse and Cal went to place his hand on her shoulder in reassurance but he was knocked away by Thalia's palms striking him in the chest and pushing him away from the kneeling group. Cal bowed his head and didn't fight back as the raven haired girl took her grief out on him. 

"Why didn't you sense this coming, Cal? You said you could feel the Labrynth's power so why didn't you know this was going to happen."

Kara tried to defend him. "Thals, It's not his fault, we were all tired."

"No. His mistake cost Carrie her life! It should have been him!" Her finger stabbed in Cal's direction. It never touched him but it was as though she'd plunged a knife into him. He shut his eyes as he fought back tears. 

"I'm sorry." He whispered.

"You don't get to be sorry now Cal!"

Feeling a faint beat under her fingertips Katie looked up at the others with wide eyes. Seeing Thalia lay into an emotionally and physically drained Cal she stepped in between them and pushed them apart. 'Stop!' she signed forcefully. Gesturing at Carrie she then moved both hand up her chest in a thumbs up - 'She's alive'.

Cal sank to the ground with an audible crack as his knees hit the ground and let out a sob of relief. 

Thalia turned sharply away from him. "Kara? Can you try? Please?"

She watched helplessly as Kara tried her best to heal the burns. Her hands glowed with the intensity of a summer day and a few of the hunters were forced to avert their eyes. Some of the charred skin started to fade to a bright and blistered red but very little else happened. Kai the satyr even tried a tune on his panpipes.

"I'm sorry, Thal. I'm a musician not a healer." Kara said.

Thalia closed her eyes. "It's okay. You tried." She pinched the bridge of her nose before gesturing at a Raven haired girl. 

"Becca - You, Kara, Alex and Kai will rig up a stretcher to take Carrie and find the quickest way out of the maze. Then Iris message the Nyx Cabin. Get them to shadow travel you back to camp. Stay with Carrie and don't come back for us!"

"Thalia.." 

She shook her head. "No. You have my orders Becca. The Labyrinth has laid a path for us - We are going to follow it but Carrie needs immediate attention."

Becca nodded reluctantly before she and the other three set about piling up the remaining fabric and poles from the destroyed tents. As they did Thalia said a prayer to Tyche and flipped an arrow to decide which direction to take - it landed in the direction they had originally been heading. She addressed the group - truly looking at the faces that were covered in dust and small cuts from the fall. "You have five minutes to gather whatever is left of your things before we start moving again - Our lady awaits us."

Cal stood up slowly and dug around again for his backpack. There was nothing important left in it but he could do with some Ambrosia right now. However he quickly gave up and waited for the group to move on.


	9. Chapter 9 - One by One

As the hunters continued onwards, Katie had to poke Cal every so often to make sure he was okay. He was silent as they walked and clearly lost in his own head. His shoulders were drooped and his eyes were staring into the void a lot. She was concerned but the look on Thalia's face suggested that she wasn't to be bothered and Cal wasn't complaining, in fact other than his emotional exhaustion he'd regained a bit of energy as they walked, clearly not quite as tired as he first appeared. 

Suddenly Thalia held up a fist and they all stopped, snapping Cal out of his daze. She held her finger to her lips and they all listened except Katie who just stood there pointedly looking bored until someone described the sounds to her. In the distance they could hear a faint roaring accompanied by the rattling of chains. Thalia signalled to proceed carefully. They crept forward until the path lead them to an archway high above a grand, colluseum-like amphitheatre. From here they crouched and spread out, positioning themselves behind pillars to see better, leaving the wolves on the path. They all knocked an arrow silently but did not draw. Instead they poked their heads around enough to see into the arena.

In a bronze cage at the edge of the arena that shimmered with an unnatural silver aura was the giant boar. She was incredibly lethargic but she still strained against the collar and chains that kept her from charging. Cal could see why - connected to the cage was a series of tubes that were filling up a large bottle with a glowing light that seemed to come out of a Harry Potter book - presumably whatever made Gods Gods was contained within.

Sat crossed legged in a meditative stance front of the cage was a woman. Ghostly white hair hung in tight voluminous curls down her her back, resting just above the ground and obscuring her face too. Her dark hands rested gently on her knees. Cal didn't recognize her so she wasn't a rogue Hecate camper but she could well have never been to camp in the first place for all he knew. Hecate campers weren't majorly affected by Lamia's curse so many were able to survive in the Mortal world.

The woman did not move for several moments before she straightened up and removed her hands from her lap. She stood up gracefully and dusted her white chiton off before walking over to the leeching device. She disconnected the tubes, put a lid on the full bottle and placed it in a bag ready for travel. She then picked up the whip that hung beside it. Leaning slightly on one hip she let the leather cord rest on the floor.

"Alrighty then. Let us not pretend that I don't know y'all are there," The woman's drawl filled the arena effortlessly. "Why don't y'all come on out where I can see you."

Thalia stepped out first, aiming her bow at the woman. The others followed suit - stepping out, drawing and aiming in a single movement. 

The woman turned but was not shocked to see 18 bows pointed in her direction. In fact, her silver eyes glinted menacingly. "Now, Now. Let's not be too hasty here." She flicked the leather cord against the cage bars causing Artemis to snarl once again. "Your ladies life rests in my hands. If I die, that there collar around her neck will tighten and strangle her."

Thalia lowered her bow but did not renove the arrow from the string. She took several steps forward threateningly. "And why would I believe a word you say. I don't even know who you are!"

"And neither will you, however I will allow you to call me Al. But did you think that you could ask who I was and I would just start ranting like some movie villain?" Al smirked and flicked the whip again. It glowed the same silver as the woman's eyes, as it struck the boar's knee. Artemis hit the floor with a grunt and did not get back up, dark crimson blood seeping from the broken skin. "That is my proof." She said firmly.

Thalia put her own arrow away signalled for the hunters to lower their bows. In perfect unison they slotted the arrow back into their quiver and slung their bows on their backs, drawing their own preferred weapons as they stepped down onto the same level as their Lieutenant and formed ranks loosely. With a single whistle the silver wolves flocked to surround the arena.

The woman looked over the group and her eyes stopped on Cal at the back of the pack. She rested a hand on her hip. "Would you look at that. Heya Lauren - Long time no see! I didn't realize you were one of these moonlighters."

The moment Cal heard the name Lauren he felt like he'd been punched in the gut. His breath caught in his throat and he looked as if he'd seen a ghost (although in truth he was drawing a blank on Al's identity). The hunters looked around in confusion.

"Who the hell is Lauren?" Thalia asked the woman.

"Don't tell me you're not using your real name Loz?" 

Thalia looked around and spotted Cal's expression. "Cal - What is she talking about? Why does she keep calling you Lauren?"

"I.." Cal was lost for words but he didn't want to have the lengthy conversation that would evolve from that question now. "I don't know. I don't know who she is - she must have mistaken me for someone else." His voice trembled as he spoke, giving away to the more astute among them that he was lying to some extent. 

Thalia side eyed him and was about to question him further when she was interrupted. 

"Oh. It's of no matter to me whether you tell the truth but full disclosure - if you don't tell 'em now then y'aint getting another opportunity. None of y'all will survive the night."

The hunters bristled and raised their weapons.

"Now, Now. I'm not going to kill y'all straight away. I've been very bored here so Mother has given me permission to have some fun. So: I will let you fight me in single combat. Woman to woman. If even one of you succeeds in besting me then I will free your precious Goddess - minus her powers of course." She smiled. It was a smile only in that her mouth moved because there was no earth at all in her eyes. "Do you not feel your own powers wane now that she is mortal?"

No one responded, staring defiantly back at the woman.

"I'll take that as a yes then." She smirked. "I'll tell you what -" She said, gesturing vaguely at them. "- I'm in a good mood. Y'all can go two at a time. So: Who'll step up to the plate? Tick. Tock."

Thalia turned to the hunters and they formed a huddle. "I'm not going to force any to fight but anyone who doesn't wish to should leave now."

No one moved.

Thalia nodded. "Alright then. It makes sense to play by her rules, we're well trained, even as mortals we can beat her. Any volunteers for the first fight?"

Twin daughters of Demeter, Tasha and Lucy, looked at each other and smiled in agreement. "We'll do it." They said in perfect unison. Thalia smiled back grimly and nodded, remembering the time she'd tried to take them on alone. Their synchronised attacks were a force to be reckoned with.

As the group disbanded and the twins proceded down the steps they noticed that Al had tied her bushy hair into a low ponytail and replaced the whip with a beautiful crafted staff. It was a foot taller than her, decorated with intricate carvings that Cal couldn't quite see clearly, rings in varying sizes and a golden cap at either end. They also noted that what had seemed like a chiton had actually been two pieces - she had removed the skirt and discarded it to reveal more practical, skin tight leggings underneath. Her leather sandals had also been removed and her bare feet tensed and released as they got used to the feel of the earth.

The hunters sheathed their own weapons or laid them to the side as they sat down to watch the fight. Lucy and Tash hopped the barrier and checked their weapons for the fight ahead.

"Alright, Ladies." The woman pointed her staff at Thalia then at the cage. "If any of y'all move or try to interfere then Moon Lady dies."

And so the fight began.


	10. Chapter 10 - Single (Double?) Combat

Lucy made the first move, tangling Al's legs in vines. The two then attacked at once, cutting down on either side with their Khopeshes. Al parried and then struck them sharply in the chest, knocking both girls back a pace. She then burnt the vines away with silver fire and ducked as the twins attacked again, both aiming for her neck. Their swords collided loudly, Lucy's flying from her hands. Al back kicked Tash then struck Lucy in the head. She then swept the staff at Tash's ankles. Tash hopped over and rolled backwards - just as Al commanded the earth to rise. An uneven pillar of rock struck her in the back of the head before sinking back as though nothing had happened. 

"She's not going for the kill - she could easily kill them but she's just leaving them there." Eliza whispered incredulously.

"She's cocky. We should use that to our advantage." The only nymph in the group, Heather, replied.

She and a daughter of Ares, Martha, went next, hoping their very different fighting styles would throw the woman's groove off. Their fight lasted a little longer but soon they were also in heaps on the floor. 

Cal stopped watching after that, getting lost in his own head. Hearing the name Lauren had brought on Dysphoria levels that he hadn't felt since before his hunting days. His thoughts were a seesaw from the mental anguish to the blank in his mind as to how the woman knew him. He didn't remember ever meeting an Al.

Katie shook him out of his daze 20 minutes later as they were going into the sixth fight. By now his fellow hunters were restless and Thalia was very close to stopping the volunteers and doing it herself. When Cal asked why she didn't anyway she said that others had convinced her to let them go before her - if nothing else to weaken Al first. Thalia had clearly only agreed with the suggestion reluctantly. 

In the ring at the moment were Lucja, daughter of Hermes, and Veronika (Ronnie), a mortal Spartan. The two were widely considered the best swordsmen in the pack but they didn't often fight together. So far they just seemed to be testing Al; staying out of range and dodging inside to make quick strikes before moving back again. Neither made any progress but they hadn't taken a hit either. They seemed to be on par or even better than the sorceress. They then slipped in close and stayed there, bombarding her with quick strikes, taking counter attacks to the sides but not faltering. Suddenly, a lucky jab caught Veronika on the chin and she nearly passed out, the back jab that followed it hit the nerve in Lucja's elbow causing her to drop her sword. As Al moved to finish Ronnie, Lucja kicked out and knocked the staff from her hands. Al's head snapped to look at Lucja. 

"Άνεμος!"

A massive wind funnel shot past Al and shoved Lucja back 15 yards and pinned her to a wall. A firm kick took Ronnie out of the equation but Al didn't bend to pick up the staff. Instead she started to chant a transformation spell in Greek. A silver glow started to build around her hands and encircle Lucja. The wind dropped but Lucja doubled over in pain. 

Cal subconsciously translated the chanting and finally something clicked in his head. Two things in fact. Firstly his brain kept singling out the word 'ινδικό χοιρίδιο' or 'Guinea Pig' but that was puzzle piece that he would fit in later because the second thing that happened was that he finally recognized the voice and knew why he hadn't remembered Al before. He had a momentary flashback to a family gathering where a teenage girl about ten years older than him sat chatting with the grown ups. Her hoodie and jeans, raven hair, and braces were so different to her appearance now but her striking silver eyes left him wondering how he'd ever forgotten her. He stood up sharply and took a few steps down towards the arena.

"Stop! Alanna!"

The sudden shout of her name disturbed the woman's focus. The light ceased and Lucja panted visibly. 

"But they used to call you Ann, right?"

Alanna turned to face Cal and raised an eyebrow disdainfully. "So. You do remember me." The corner of her of her mouth turned up in a disdainful sneer as picked up her staff. "I guess y'always were a little slow on the uptake."

Taking the advantage of the distraction, Lucja got up and ran forward with all the speed her father had gifted her. Her feet made no sound as she ran, scooping up the sword and lunging. Seeing a few of the hunters watching behind her, she looked over her shoulder, slid one leg back so that her body was out of the way of the sword. She jabbed the staff towards Lucja's chain and, at the last second, tapped one of the symbols on the staff. An eight inch spike shot out the end, straight into Lucja's head and out the other side. Alanna withdrew the spike, and Lucja crumpled, blood pooling on the ground as the remaining hunters cried out in shock. 

For Thalia it was the final straw, she snatched up her spear and stormed past Cal. The moment she was over the barrier she activated Aegis and fought like hell, throwing everything she had at Alanna.

Katie moved past Cal to be her second but Cal turned and caught her arm. As was the practice when arguing in the Deaf community, he didn't look at her until he'd finished conveying his point. 'No. I need to correct my mistakes. I'll do it.'

Katie shook her head. 'You're tired. She's going to throw everything at you - look.' She gestured at the arena Thalia was deflected hit after hit and blast after blast.

'It's me, or them-' he pointed at Eliza and the other two. '-or you. I won't watch anyone else die because of me.' 

'Its not your fault..' 

But Cal was already running down to join Thalia.


	11. Chapter 11 - Wizards Duel

Cal hopped the wall and drew his Sai. He flipped one so that he held it by the cross guard instead of the handle and ran it along his forearm and kept the other in front of him in a reverse grip as he circled, looking for an opportunity.

Thalia ceased her attacks when Cal joined and circled too, feinting every now and then. 

"So Lauren - what made you join these naive little girls."

Cal remained silent and ignored her attempts to rile him up. He'd found that was always the best strategy for transphobes like his cousin. He lunged forward close enough to be a threat without actually attacking. Alanna went to block his attack and Thalia capitalized on it. She lunged with her spear, keeping her shield close to her body. Al spun and dodged it but Thalia struck out with Aegis, pushing the woman away and into the path of Cal who moved to strike with the weighted end of his left Sai. Alanna ducked under the blow. They went back and forth for a while, trading blows like they were money and soaking up magical attacks like the two of them were sponges but neither Cal nor Thalia gave up even when each were more pending bruises than skin and Thalia was sure she'd cracked several ribs.

"Γήινο κλουβί!" Alanna commanded suddenly, raising her arms smoothly, as though lifting the earth herself, as a group of irregular earthen pillars shot up, trapping Cal and pinning his arms, forcing him to drop his Sai. He struggled to free himself as Thalia took blast after blast of silver fire on her shield but with his arms trapped the way they were he couldn't even move his finger to conjure up any form of energy blast let alone move enough to make the right trigger movements for any of his elemental commands. He panicked for a minute but remembered the Last Chance Saloon move that Lou-Ellen had taught him - a way to boost his power for a short time by filling himself completely with Chi. 

Kicking off his boots to better centre himself, he closed his eyes and started to meditate, letting his awareness flow into the ground as peacefulness flooded through him. He could hear everything and nothing. He could feel Artemis' blood, the bars of the cage, the strange power of a book - hidden under a skirt, and the weapons and bodies of his fallen sisters. He let all his worries wash away as blue light filled his body, creeping up his neck and into the veins on his face. 

Thalia kept Alanna facing away from him so that she didn't notice and knock him from his trance before he finished. 

Finally his eyes and hands lit up and he snapped his eyes open, commanding the pillars to free him in an ethereal voice. "Ελευθέρωσέ με." They sank into the ground and he strode apathetically towards the fight. Alanna flung Thalia back with another burst of wind and turned in disbelief. 

"No! You're a Sorceress too?!" She exclaimed.

"No Alanna," He continued to walk towards her. "I'm a sorcerER. But you never could understand that could you? I'm. Not. A. Girl." On every word of his last sentence he fired an energy blast at his cousin. She span her staff and spoke "Ασπίδα", creating an energy shield to deflect the attacks but she still was pushed back by the force with which Cal had thrown them and she was forced to drop the wind that imprisoned Thalia. 

He built up a large ball of energy between his hands then smirked. Gripping it like a dodgeball, he hurled it at Alanna's shield whilst Thalia picked up her spear and ran to position herself behind Alanna for when the woman was inevitably thrown backwards by the blast. 

Alanna tried to play baseball with the energy but it snapped her staff and flung her straight into Thalia who smacked her forward with Aegis. She fell to the ground, Thalia holding her spear to her throat as Cal picked up his Sai and came to join her, still radiating magic.

"Change her back!" Thalia ordered. "Don't make me tell you twice!"

Seeing Cal approach behind her, Alanna smirked, kicking Thalia's hand upwards and then spinning to her feet, pulling the spear past her to plunge it into Cal. He was forced to bend himself over backwards to avoid being skewered. As he bent, he lashed out, flinging a Sai so that the weighted end struck her in the temple, knocking her out cleanly and halting the movement of the spear.

Unable to keep himself balanced as he was, Cal fell over and lay there for a moment to recover before standing up as the glow faded from his eyes and he stumbled. He caught himself before he could fall and checked his wounds, noting the thin cut on his sternum from where the spear had sliced clean through his silver jacket, shirt and binder. Making sure that his binder still did it's job he adjusted his shirt to cover it and turned to Thalia as the other concious hunters joined them, drawing their bows and aiming them at the unconscious woman. 

"Dammit Cal. We needed her to break the enchantment!" 

"Well, I'm sorry for stopping her from killing me but now we'll have to find another solution!"

"What other solution is there?!"

Cal remembered something that his hyper aware mind had skipped over. "The book.." he muttered running over to the discarded white skirt. Moving it aside he revealed the leather bound tome. He flicked through it as the others came to join him, leaving Sofia to guard Alanna from 5 yards away.

Finding the correct page he studied the spell that had been used, running his finger down as he silently read every line.

"Can you reverse it?" Eliza asked, taking the words right out of Thalia's mouth.

"Maybe.." Cal mused, flicking over the page to see if there were any other notes. "I think it's just a basic transformation spell with some frilly power boosting phrases.. no premade reversing spell I know will cut it.."

He flicked through the book looking for a reversing spell. When his search came up empty he sighed.

"I guess I'm winging it then.. Anyone have a notebook and pen, if no paper is available a pen alone will suffice - mine is buried under the rubble somewhere."

Eliza rummaged through her pockets and pulled out a stubby pencil. "Is this okay?"

"It's fine." He took the pencil and started writing hastily on the inside cover of the book, flipping between the original and his own spell every few words. 

Katie stopped him, her hands making sharp, bold movements as opposed to her usual flowing words. 'You are tired! We can get Lou-Ellen.'

As if in response to her statement, the boar groaned lowly, it's breath getting rougher as it struggle not to crush it's lungs under its own bodyweight.

Cal shook his head and wedged the book under his arm to respond. 'She won't survive long enough.. I have no choice. Can you melt the cage while I finish writing? It's protection isn't working now that Ann is unconscious.' 

Sure enough, without the others noticing, the silver shimmer had faded from the bronze bars. 

Katie nodded her hands heating up as she walked to the cage and gripped tightly to the metal of two bars, high enough that they would all be able to in through. The metal dripped through her fingers and she knelt to do the same at the bottom. She worked quickly, removing another three bars before stepping through and moving onto the chains that held Artemis in place by the neck. She could not do the collar itself, fearing to get that close to the tusks but it was enough to relax the boar's movements. 

Cal had finished writing by now and followed her into the cage, careful to avoid the small amounts of liquid metal. He stretched his left hand towards Artemis, held the book in his other and started to chant in Greek - his eyes and hands glowing. Artemis was surrounded by the light too. The basis of the spell sounded quite similar to the one used by Alanna earlier but it was conceptually very different. Eliza was confused as she listened. 

"None of that makes any sense." She whispered. "It's like he's talking backwards."

Thalia facepalmed and turned to Eliza in frustration . "Of course.. He's going to save Artemis by talking backwards.." She sighed. "It's like we're some kind of joke. The Fates were like - we're having a bad year, let's have a kid save Artemis by talking backwards."

She was cut off by a small metallic noise and turned back to the cage to see what had happened.


	12. Chapter 12 - Cal - You moron!

The noise belonged to a small bronze name tag that had been attached to the collar and it was shortly followed by the leather book. The spell had worked and now an exhausted, naked, teenaged Artemis lay curled before them. Cal turned away respectfully, using the bars of the cage to hold himself up. Thalia took her jacket off and picked up Alanna's skirt, helping Artemis to put them on, so that Cal could turn back around. He'd never seen the Goddess look so forlorn as she lay there with weeping knees, held up only by Thalia, who knelt beside her. 

"In the bag." Cal said to Tammy, gesturing at a satchel a few yards. "Make her drink the bottle, get her power back."

Tammy nodded and chucked the bottle carefully through the bars to Thalia who held the bottle to Artemis' lips. At first she could barely swallow it but as she drank more she visibly improved, holding her own weight, then taking the bottle from Thalia. Half way through she stopped to get her breath back, the glowing liquid coating her lips. As she finished the rest, Cal slowly slumped down the bars until he could sit, trying to fight off the darkness that threatened to claim him, barely able to keep his eyes open. Katie sat next to him, helping him stay upright. 

Now back to full strength, Artemis' red blood turned gold before the wounds closed. She stood up, pocketing the name tag in evidence, and looked sadly around at the bodies that littered the arena then back to Cal. She knelt before him and raised his chin with two cool fingers so that he could look her in the eye. He blinked slowly, not even having enough energy to bow his head.

"I'm fine, My Lady. Help them." He whispered, nodding his head into the arena. 

"Your courage is admirable Cal; my healing power may be small but I have just enough for both you and them - a few are even starting to wake up." 

She was referring to Tash and Martha - who were beginning to move - and Veronika who had barely been out in the first place and was pulling herself to her feet, holding her head. 

Artemis smiled gently and took his hand filling him with the cool energy of a moonlit night. He felt it spread thinly through his body, allowing him the energy to stand. 

"I can do no more for you now but that should last till we can find some Nectar or Ambrosia. I regret that the conditions are not appropriate to conjure some Moon Water for that would be of great use in a time like this."

Cal bowed his head in thanks as Artemis glided through the arena, waking her Hunters with a gentle hand and a heavy heart. Katie helped him to his feet as they slowly collected their things and all gathered in front of the Goddess. Those with worse injuries leaning on wolves or those amongst the group who had not been knocked out in the first place. Katie supported Cal and Thalia, while Tammy helped Lucy and Sofia kept her bow trained on Alanna. 

The sorceress had been bound in chains, muzzled and blindfolded to stop her escaping but Artemis had yet to decide how to deal with her appropriately. 

Artemis held Lucja in her arms, as she addressed the group.

"Thank you, my Hunters, for your determination, skill, and courage in tracking me down and freeing me." She snapped her fingers and Alanna vanished. " I have sent her to Olympus to face the consequences of her actions. Your efforts, and sacrifices, will not go unrewarded and I shall take great pride in hearing the tales of your exploits but for now let us find a soft bed, some good food and friendly faces." 

She smiled warmly and teleported them to Camp Half-blood as smoothly as she could. They appeared near the cabins, surprising a blonde woman who nearly collided with Heather and Zara, and drawing a growing crowd very quickly.

"What the-" The blonde cut herself off as two dark haired toddlers ran up behind her. "Lady Artemis, it is good to see you safe, I'm sorry for the loss of your Hunter."

She looked down at the toddlers who were staring at the group with wide grey eyed. "Run and find Daddy. Mommy needs to have a grown up chat with these people."

The two ran off towards Cabin 3, weaving through the legs of any one who didn't move out of their way.

"Thank you Annabeth." Artemis replied when the woman's attention returned to the group. "It is good to be back but as you can see many of my hunters have wounds that must be attended to."

"Of course Milady. I'm sure the entire camp will be aware of your presence momentarily and no doubt the Apollo cabin included but let us speed the process up and find Will. Do any of your Hunters need help heading to the infirmary?"

"At this point all help is gratefully recieved."

Annabeth nodded. "Lila, George, Brad and Charlotte - help the weaker hunters walk. Charley and Oscar - help me with their bags."

As the selected campers hurried to follow their orders and the group began to walk towards the big house, a 12 year old Hecate camper ran back into her cabin, calling out for Lou-Ellen, who grabbed a fizzing bottle of magenta liquid and as if a life depended on her.

"Cal! You absolute moron!! Wait!" She shouted after them. 

The group stopped and turned to face her as she ran up the hill, checking her watch frantically. 

"Cal - Drink!" She cried, throwing the bottle at Katie. She caught the bottle with one hand but as Cal went to take the bottle a series of loud snapping sounds could be heard, accompanied by Cal's tortured scream. He fell to the ground unconscious with his limbs sticking out at unnatural angles, blood soaking his shirt as his ribs broke through the skin. His jacket fell open, the thin, torn shirt beneath hiding neither the curves nor the sports bra shaped, flesh coloured binder he used to his them.

Seeing a need that no one else could fulfill, Lou-Ellen had no time to catch her breath. She clapped her hands together then spread them apart vertically. As she did so, Cal was lifted into the air at waist height. 

"Follow me, Quickly!" She said, jogging with Cal to the infirmary, her watch beeping loudly. As they got to the infirmary they could hear another watch beeping in sync. Will rushed out and swore loudly - he looked panicked and Nico watched from just out of the way of the door as Will rushed back inside, silencing his watch with a quick swipe, and cleared a bed next to the heavily bandaged Carrie. Any other injured hunters filed in behind and were directed to the other side of the room with some Nectar and Ambrosia to give the healers room to work.

Seeing how much of a challenge they were facing Artemis placed Lucja's body on a bed in the corner and walked outside. "Alright brother - you owe me a favor after last time. Get your sunny ass down here." She said under her breath.

The sun-tanned God appeared in a flash of brilliant sunlight, throwing a peace sign. 

"Wassup sis? Glad to see you've got rid of the hooves - Kara has been rather worried."

"One of my hunters is laying in there with too many broken bones to count and losing blood like nobody's business. Help him."

"Can't my kids deal with it?" 

"As much as I trust your children, this requires more speed and skill than I believe even Will has - Cal is running out of time."

Apollo smiled and rolled his eyes. "I've never known you care so much for a boy before."

"So you'll help then?"

"We're even now."

She just rolled her eyes and followed him into the infirmary.


	13. Chapter 13 - The truth (and Cal) comes out

Cal awoke tied to a hospital bed by his arms with his limbs in plaster and a monster headache. Once again he wasn't wearing any of his own clothes or a binder under the sheets, just a plain hospital gown, but this time when he looked round he saw Kara talking with a tired Carrie who was in the bed next to him. With his arms out of action he could do nothing to cover himself and resorted to hunching his shoulders inwards in an attempt to null the sinking feeling in his stomach. 

Kara looked over and saw his movements. Wordlessly she went to find Will - who'd placed himself personally in charge of Cal, being the only one the immortal teen had ever fully trusted. 

She came back with the healer, who had a half eaten bagel in his mouth as he rolled his sleeves up. He took the bagel from his mouth and smiled as he walked over, putting his free hand on Cal's shoulder.

"You, Cal, Are going to be the death of me one day - you know that? Either that or you'll kill yourself with your own stupidity."

Cal couldn't meet his eyes. "I'm sorry, Doc, I really am but-"

Will cut him off. "Relax Cal, I'm joking, you don't have to explain yourself to me."

"Who tied me up?" He asked, tugging at the cords.

"Ah. That was me - didn't want you running off again. Sorry." 

Cal nodded. "Well, I'm not going anywhere with these casts on so..?" 

"Yeah, Alright then - but I'm sending Nico if you try and escape." 

"Honestly - I fear you more than your husband." 

Will sighed and finished the bagel as he untied the cords and checked Cal over. "How's the pain?"

Cal twisted onto his side and moved his arms to cover his chest as comfortably as he could with the heavy casts. "My head's killing me but everything is pretty standard."

Will raised an eyebrow.

"Okay. Everything else hurts but I can survive."

"Alright - the headache should pass once you've eaten something - what do you want?"

"A bagel would be great."

"Sure I'll go get you one. Kara - Tell Thalia or Lady Artemis that Cal is awake and you can speak to him whenever you want."

Kara nodded coldly, not even looking at Cal as she left.

Will returned a few minutes later with a bagel on a plate and helped Cal sit up to eat it. He sat down next to him to chat.

"So how long was I out?" Cal asked between mouthfuls.

"I kept you out for a week, then stopped feeding you sedatives three days ago. I'm going to be honest - the only reason it was that shirt was because Dad made an appearance, something about owing a favor."

"Ten days.. Anything big happen?"

"They burnt Lucja's body the day after you got back, but since then nothing. The whole camp's been buzzing though - mainly because of... Well.. you."

"Me?"

Will hesitated. "When you fell... Your jacket fell open.. your binder.. the shirt hole exposed it.. enough campers were there and a few of the hunters have been less than subtle. I'm sorry."

"They all know.." Cal's eyes welled with tears. He didn't get the chance to tell people on his own terms and now he couldn't control the a single thing about his identity. "How.. How did they react? Kara seemed.. hostile."  
"Some have reacted badly.. I think Thalia is just annoyed that you didn't tell her-"

Carrie nodded in confirmation from her bed. 

"-and Katie.. Well." he chuckled. "I had her and a son of Zeus in here few days ago. She had a black eye, He woke up an hour later with a concussion. Apparently he won't be disrespecting your pronouns again."

Cal smiled sadly and looked down at his lap, glad he definitely had one ally but he also knew he'd created a rift within the hunters. 

"Speak of the devil." 

Cal looked up to see Katie had poked her head around the infirmary door.

'Hi Magic Boy.'

Cal waved back, 'I can't sign well - cast = clumsy'

She smiled, shrugged and came to sit with him. Will got up to leave. 'He stays here and nothing tiring- only rules, okay?'

Katie nodded. Once he had left she expressed her concern for Cal. He insisted that he was fine but she wasn't convinced. She was about to start pestering him when he looked over at the door again. She turned and saw Artemis and all the others come in prompting every Apollo kid to leave on the double. The expressions were extremely mixed, reducing the predicability of the final outcome considerably in Cal's eyes. He took a deep breath, dreading the conversation that now had to happen.

"Glad to see you're okay, Cal." Artemis said. "However, now that you are awake we feel it only fair that you provide an explanation. Thalia has told me everything she could, Lou-Ellen explained about the spells you used but there are a large number of gaps in the tale. We might have been able to infer a large amount but, What was the phrase you used Madeleine?"

"To assume makes an Ass of You and Me?" 

"Ah. Yes. We decided it was best to let you explain yourself."

"Where should I start?"

"How about why you've been lying to us about who you are?" Kara interjected.

"I never meant to go so long.. I always meant to tell you that I'm trans but never found the right time and before I knew it 15 years had passed."

"You know we wouldn't have cared, right?" Thalia asked.

Cal looked around at the faces. "I'd say some of you do.."

"Just tell us about the woman from the Labyrinth - how did you know her?"

"Her name is Alanna Sanders. She's my cousin, in a way. My father had a mortal step brother - Alanna's father- My Uncle Jonathan. I only met Alanna a couple of times and everyone called her Ann. She looked so different back then that I didn't recognize her when I saw her now."

"But she knew your name - Lauren. Surely that narrowed down the list?" That was Sofia.

Cal cringed. "Lauren is my dead name. My name is Cal. And I was rather preoccupied with other events to go through the list of everyone who knew me as a kid."

"So how come your cousin is able to do magic?"

"I figured that out at the same time as I recognized her. She tried to turn Lucja into a Guinea Pig - I remembered a tale about one of Percy Jackson's quests when he was turned into a Guinea Pig too. Her mother must be Circe. She definitely fits the criteria."

"She does.. I'm sure that she never had this much power before.." Artemis mused.

"Why did you lie Cal?" Thalia asked.

"What?"

"Twice in the maze you lied to my face: When I asked how much time had passed before you joined us and when I asked who Lauren was."

Cal couldn't look her in the eye. "The first time it just happened but the second time.. I told myself I didn't think that the time was right for the conversation but truthfully.. I was afraid of your reaction. All of you - I've lived among you for so long that I felt certain that I left it too late."

"So were you ever going to tell us?"

"When I stopped over thinking it? yeah. I nearly casually out myself a few times with snarky one liners but I cut myself off a lot."

"But you told Will?"

"I needed someone I could go to about medical issues and then I needed a new binder and it was generally just useful to have him as a contact."

"You're a moron - You could have joined the hunt as a girl without needing to take a Styx oath." Annie said.

"Don't you get it?! I'm not a girl! Doing that would have been living a lie and trust me when I say that I'd probably have killed myself within a year."

Katie stood up to help defend Cal but Thalia told her to stand down.

"Listen Cal," Artemis said. "As it stands your identity is not a problem and if anyone has a problem with that they will be wise not to say it but you have lied to me and my Lieutenants. My hunters must trust each other absolutely and many among them do not trust you. I regret to say that I am taking your immortality away. You may no longer call yourself one of my followers."

Cal fought back tears as the Goddess handed him the tag from the collar that he had freed her from.

"Take this as a token of my gratitude. One day you will want a favor from me - offer me this as proof of my debt to you. We're leaving camp, Carrie is going to follow when she can - This is farewell."

She turned and left followed by the others. Katie stood to go too, lingering for a moment to sign 'see you around Magic Boy'

'See you around... Mom'

She smiled sadly and left Cal alone. He broke down and slumped in the bed clutching the tag tightly in his hand. All the suppressed emotions from his times in the maze had been building up but now the floodgates opened and he sobbed, tears soaking his pillow. He didn't care if Carrie could hear him. 

Over the next few weeks he pushed everyone away. His broken bones healed quickly thanks to ambrosia and he was allowed to return to his cabin but it wasn't home to him. He took to sleeping in a tent he took from Artemis Cabin - Chiron didn't try to stop him. During the days he wandered around aimlessly and he barely ate at mealtimes. Will, Lou-Ellen, Annabeth, Nico - All of them tried to bring him out of His funk but he just didn't know what to do with himself. The only time he showed emotion was when he challenged the stares that followed him around. He tried interacting with the kids who looked his age - who stared judgmentally when he didn't understand the latest slang - and the ones who were actually his age - who now had kids of their own - but just didn't seem to fit in anywhere.

One day he just packed up the tent in a Hunter's rucksack and left. He pinned a note with instructions on how to contact him in an emergency to the door of Hecate cabin but it told them nothing about his intentions. They looked for him of course but he clearly didn't want to be found so they gave up. 


End file.
